JAN
21
Chicken Parmesan with Sundried Tomato Sauce
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Chicken Parmesan feels like home. I’ve been making it for so long that I barely remember the first time that I made it. I know that it was sometime during college, because at one point I remember having roommates who were amazed that I could cook something so good.
And that’s when cooking when from an activity I enjoyed to a bit of an obsession. I was lucky enough to have one other roommate who was also a very good cook (who I am so very lucky to still be in touch with on a regular basis and get to visit often – Hi, Nila!).
Somehow the two of us convinced the other 4 that we should start a meal rotation. That it made more sense for us to take turns cooking real meals each night than it did for all of us to make our separate dinners.
Cooking Light was the only food website that I really knew of back then. I would avoid homework and instead browse recipes and bookmark what I wanted to make next. Perhaps that itself was an indication that I should have changed majors…
But, who knew what a food blog was anyway? If they even existed, they were probably so few and far between. And the word “blog” certainly was not in the average person’s vocabulary.
So I pressed on studying Psychology with a Neuroscience focus and kept on cooking in my spare time. And thought about food pretty much all the time.
So here is my recipe for what Eric and I both consider “Better Than Any Restaurant” Chicken Parmesan, originally beginning from a Cooking Light recipe with a few adaptations through the years. The chicken is basically the same, it’s the sauce that has had a few evolutions. And I do believe this is the first recipe I ever cooked for my lovely In-Laws.
Chicken Parmesan with Sundried Tomato Sauce
adapted from Champion Chicken Parmesan
Ingredients:
Sundried Tomato Sauce:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 (4 ounce) jar tomato paste
1/2 cup red wine
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (14.5-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1-2 teaspoons dried Italian Seasoning (in summer I use a handful of fresh basil added at the end)
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup sundried tomatoes, sliced*
1 heaping cup red bell pepper, diced
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
3/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt, or according to taste preferences*I like to buy the kind in oil that are julienne sliced. Purchase a large jar at Costco. Before using in dishes, I rinse excess oil off.
For the Chicken:
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt, if desired
4 (4-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 egg white, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more if needed
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheeseDirections:
For the Sauce:
Add the olive oil to a large saucepan or dutch oven and heat over medium-high. Add onion and saute for 3-5 minutes, until translucent. Add garlic and saute a minute more. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently for 2 minutes.Add the wine and whisk to combine with the tomato paste. Stir in the diced and crushed tomatoes, Italian seasoning and bay leaf. Bring to a boil and then let simmer for 15 minutes.
Stir in the sundried tomatoes and bell pepper. Simmer until pepper is tender. Stir in parsley, balsamic vinegar and season with salt and pepper (if desired).
For the chicken:
Preheat oven to 350°.Combine the flour, parmesan, salt and pepper in a shallow bowl or plate with a rim.
Place chicken breasts in a gallon sized Ziploc bag. Using a meat mallet, pound meat on both sides until it is flattened to 1/4 to 1/2 of an inch. (Some are easier to flatten than others. If they are really thick, I will cut them in half through the middle into to thinner breasts).
Coat each piece of chicken egg white, then dip both sides into the in parmesan mixture. In a cast iron skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken pieces to the pan, cooking cook 5 minutes per side - or until golden.
Add chicken to a lightly greased 9x13 pan. Pour a large spoonful of sauce on top of each breast, then top with mozzarella. Bake at 350° for 5-10 minutes (or until chicken is cooked through and cheese is melted.
Serve with pasta and additional sauce.
About the Author:
Katie’s lifelong interest in cooking good food has shown her that part of the goodness in life is enjoying delicious food with friends and family. She is: Writer. Photographer. Recipe Developer. Website Founder. Lover of all things good in life. Wife & Mom. A mix of great recipes, family memories, and yummy photography is what Katie serves up each week at GoodLife Eats™. Katie resides in Colorado with her husband and two children.
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Hello! I'm Katie Goodman, author of GoodLife Eats Etc. where I share what I find in my life. A mix of great recipes, family memories, adventures, good reads, and anything else that I love is what you will discover here.
This sounds INCREDIBLE! Chicken parm is one of my all-time favorite comfort foods. This sundried tomato sauce sounds wonderful!
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i love that you spiced up regular old chicken parm with sundried tomatoes! absolutely delicious
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I only just finished breakfast, and my stomach grumbled when I looked at that photo. This looks like a great recipe, Katie! I’m going to have to put it on the dinner list for next week.
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Gorgeous post Katie! Love it!
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Looks great!
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Great dish! My former roommate and I shared cooking duties too!
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one word….YUM!
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The breading on that looks fantastic! I am going to have to give it a try. I feel like we’ve been in a chicken rut lately where we avoid it because it’s same old, same old. Maybe this will help get us out.
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This looks so delicious! I ate my lunch already, but am hungry again! Great photos, too!
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I am starving right now and looking at this chicken parmesan makes me want to scrap my stuffed peppers plan! Lovely photos, Katie.
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My in-laws are coming next week and I think I’m going to put this on my meal list. Thanks!
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I’ve never made a really great chicken parm, so I am definitely going to try your recipe. Yum!
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Mmmmm. This looks so delicious. The sauce is chunky and rich looking. It’s a must try!
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Love chicken parmesan. This was one of the first things I knew how to cook too!
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I must have missed this one in my searches on the CL website! I’m definitely marking this one to try!
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Chicken parm is our favorite meal. Love it!
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There’s definitely something very comforting and “home-y” about chicken parm. Yum!
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Another beautiful looking dish (that’s why I love this blog
). I think I’ll serve it with some rice noodles.
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Yum, sounds delicious.
Thanks for sharing.
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This recipe looks great! I like the idea of using a sun-dried tomato sauce instead of your typical marinara sauce. Sounds like a good recipe to try this weekend!
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That sauce sounds absolutely divine!
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Delicious!
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I haven’t had chicken Parmesan in soooo long! This looks and sounds absolutely incredible! Definitely going to make this soon!
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I have to smile reading your story about cooking for your roommates! I lived with 3 roommates in an apartment in college, and we had a rotation, too… I wasn’t much of a cook then, though. Though, I did make some mean tacos.
Love the look of this chicken parm. It’s my hubby’s favorite food in the world, and I rarely make it. I’ll have to make this for him very soon!
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Katie, this is INCREDIBLE. I made it for dinner and then had to go to a meeting. All through my meeting, I day dreamed about eating more of this. When I got home, I ate some cold. The next morning, I ate it for breakfast. I used the leftover sauce for pizza and it’s the best pizza sauce EVER!
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Katie replied: — September 18th, 2011 @ 9:44 PM
Nothing like replying 9 months later…but I made this last week and came to look up the post and was reminded of your comment. So glad you liked it Erin!
An absolute stunner! I made it a few weeks ago, and I was speechless over how good it was
Thanks so much for sharing the recipe!
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I wanted to tell you that I made this last night, with a few small changes, and it was incredible. I wanted to do a blog about it and link back to your blog but I wanted to ask for permission first. My email is in this comment, let me know when you can if that’s alright with you. Hope to hear from you soon. Thanks for the wonderful recipe!
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Katie replied: — February 17th, 2012 @ 9:25 AM
As long as you are not using my photos, recipe is credited appropriately (adapted from GoodLife Eats & linked to original recipe), and the instructions are rewritten in your own words it is fine with me if you choose to repost a recipe. Glad you enjoyed it!